1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a technology that allows a mobile phone user to find another mobile phone user to play a match-up in a game.
2. Description of the Related Art
There are known online games (network games) that allow a terminal, such as a personal computer, a game machine, or a mobile phone, to access a server apparatus through a network, and to allow a plurality of users at remote locations to play a game. Among the online games, for example, there is known an online match-up game in which one user plays a match-up with another user at a remote location one-to-one.
A user who wants to play an online match-up game wants to play a match-up at present, and even if a compatible opponent is present in view of a difference in ability, there is no sense if the user cannot find a match-up opponent who can immediately play a match-up with him/her in a game. When many users log on to the online match-up game site that is provided by the server apparatus, it may be expected that a match-up opponent appears comparatively promptly. Meanwhile, in case of a so-called maniac game, it may not be expected that many users are logging on to the online match-up game site.
In the online match-up game, there are many cases where unseen and unknown users at remote locations play a match-up in the game. Accordingly, if a compatible match-up opponent is not selected, the users may not enjoy the game. To overcome this problem, there is suggested a method that finds compatible users on the basis of personal information registered in a personal information database, informs the individual users that they are compatible with each other, and if the users give OKs, and allows the compatible users to share the information (for example, see JP-A-2001-344372 (Paragraphs 0032 and 0033)).
However, as described in JP-A-2001-344372, even if the matching method that finds the compatible users on the basis of the previously registered personal information is applied, in order for a user to immediately play a match-up in the game, the compatible users need to be selected among the users who are logging on to the server apparatus at that time. Meanwhile, in a game in which the number of users who are logging on to the server apparatus at some time may not be expected to begin with, the number of compatible users is limited, and thus the above-described method may make almost no sense.
As described in JP-A-2001-344372, the method that finds the compatible users on the basis of the previously registered personal information is not necessarily applied to a case where the compatible users are selected from the users who are logging on the server apparatus at that time. In this case, however, the individual users who were informed they are compatible with each other may not immediately give the OKs. If so, it may be impossible to meet the user's desire that he/she wants to play a match-up with someone in the online match-up game. In addition, even though a user who has waning interest in the game is informed from the server apparatus that he/she is compatible with other users, it may not be expected that he/she gives the OK.